Wednesday, November 28, 2012

I used to think there were two different types of teachers. Quite
simply, I thought there were good teachers and there were bad teachers and that
was it. Good teachers were those that were excellent at what they did every
single day in the classroom and in every aspect of being a teacher. They taught
dynamic lessons, contributed to the school and continuously evolved their craft
to be better. Bottom line, they were good. Bad teachers were those that were
unable to connect with kids and had bad instructional techniques. They couldn't
control their classes. Parents were always complaining about them. When I was
in a meeting with these bad teachers I couldn't stand being around them. They
seemed to be doing the same thing every year and in the same way. At the end of
the day, these were the teachers that were talked about in the teacher’s lounge
and people counted down the days until they retired.

For the longest time I thought that was it. Those were the two
different types of teachers. You're either a good teacher who deserved to work
with kids every day or you were a bad teacher and you deserved to be fired.
However, I'm beginning to see a third type of teacher which might be the most
prevalent and also the most important.

This third type of teacher looks suspiciously similar to a bad
teacher. Yet, if you look closer and boil it down these teachers are doing the
best they know how and that's it. They may not be good teachers, but then again
they may not have ever been told how to be one. They don't know how to improve
or how to teach any other way. They are just teaching the way they always have
or the way in which they themselves were taught. At the end of the day they
think they're doing right because they don't know any other way. These teachers
often get frustrated when people think they're bad teachers. This is because
they think they're good because they're doing the best they know how and they
don't know any other way.

With this in mind I would like to think that there are three
distinctly different types of teachers and they should each be treated
differently. There are still good teachers out there that still fit in the definition
above. We need to celebrate these teachers and model our work after and around
them. I also think there are bad teachers out there but I revise my earlier definition.
The way I see it now, a bad teacher is one that has been shown a better way to
do something and refuses to change. They are making a choice not to change even
if they have been provided the chance to do so and clear evidence that it helps
kids. In my opinion, we need to help these people find a way to do something
else for a living. Finally, I see those “other” teachers that just need a
guiding hand or the inspiration to change. The good teachers have an obligation
to not complain about these teachers but instead to mentor and help them be
better at what they do.

What kind of teacher are you? More importantly, what kind of teachers
are you working with and what are you doing about it? Are you pushing your
peers to be better and helping them on their journey? Who do you turn to in an
effort to improve yourself?